Bishop Thomas J. Welsh, who was the first leader of the Diocese of Arlington, Va., when it was formed in 1974, died yesterday at age 87. The Arlington Catholic Herald has the story, which includes the remarkable growth of the diocese since its founding.

Fun is something that Noah, son of Keith and Sheila Oakley, members of Good Shepherd Parish, appreciates – probably more than all of his kindergarten classmates at Chilton Area Catholic School. That’s because Noah has been battling brain cancer since he was 2.

CLARKS MILLS – Dolores Klingeisen, 83, carefully opens a large envelope, retrieved from a living room shelf, to reveal photos of children in a modest classroom. A picture of a young boy sitting at a desk brings a smile to her face. She doesn’t know the student, or the school he attends, but recognizes the light blue and white rosary in his hand. It is one of 100,500 rosaries Klingeisen has made in the past 15 years.

ROGERS — In November, Bishop Anthony B. Taylor released his first pastoral letter to Catholics in the Diocese of Little Rock called, “I Was a Stranger and You Welcomed Me: A Pastoral Letter on the Human Rights of Immigrants.”

In the weeks that followed, staff members at St. Vincent de Paul Church gathered to meet and discuss the pastoral letter. It was at the end of one of the meetings that staff members were asked if they had any experiences related to immigration. A slender, dark-haired young woman, Soledad Hernandez, stood and told her story.

How do you teach abstinence? The question rises because of some recent research claiming that so-called “abstinence only” sex education works only in the very short term. Do you simply say “Abstinence is better than indulgence, so don’t do it,” whatever “it” may be?